‘Extremely Happy With Pete’: Trump Rejects Report of Camp David Rift With Hegseth

US President Donald Trump on Thursday dismissed reports of a heated exchange with Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth over US weapons stockpiles as “fake,” insisting he has full confidence in his Pentagon chief.

The denial came after The Washington Post reported that Trump confronted Hegseth during a Cabinet meeting at Camp David over alleged shortages of key munitions, including long-range missiles and air-defence interceptors, amid the ongoing Iran conflict.

Reacting to the report on Truth Social, Trump accused the newspaper of spreading “false and completely unfounded rumours” and said he remained “extremely happy” with Hegseth’s performance. “The Fake News, as usual, is spreading false and completely unfounded rumors. I am extremely happy with the job that Pete Hegseth is doing,” Trump wrote.

Trump praised Hegseth’s leadership at the Pentagon, crediting him for the administration’s military operations in Venezuela and Iran. He also highlighted improvements in military recruitment and the removal of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programmes under Hegseth’s tenure.

Stepping up his criticism, Trump described The Washington Post as “one of the worst media outlets in the business” and claimed the publication was informed before publication that its report was “completely FALSE.” He further branded the story “treasonous.”

According to The Washington Post, Trump voiced frustration during the Camp David meeting over the alleged depletion of US weapons stockpiles, which it said had limited military options in the Iran conflict. The report further claimed Hegseth denied misleading the president and instead blamed Deputy Defence Secretary Stephen Feinberg for failing to fully brief Trump on the situation.

The White House and the Pentagon swiftly rejected the report. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the alleged confrontation “literally never happened” and reiterated that Trump has “the utmost confidence” in Hegseth. Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell also dismissed the claims, saying Hegseth neither misled the president about US munitions levels nor blamed Feinberg for any alleged shortages.